By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jackson Brown, Navy Office of Community Outreach
Photo by Senior Chief Mass Communication Specialist Gary Ward
PEARL HARBOR – A 2014 Lamirada High School graduate and Buena Park, California, native is serving in the U.S. Navy as part of the world’s largest international maritime warfare exercise known as the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC).
Petty Officer 3rd Class Nicole Negrete is a gunner's mate aboard USS William P. Lawrence, currently operating out of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
A Navy gunner's mate is responsible for maintaining, operating, and handling the ship's small arms weaponry, as well as the ship's mounted five-inch gun.
Negrete is looking forward to applying the lessons learned from Buena Park to working in the Navy.
“I learned how to stay strong even when things are tough, and to stay motivated,” said Negrete. “That's helped me in the Navy.”
As the world’s largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring safety at sea and security on the world's oceans. RIMPAC 2018 is the 26th exercise in the series that began in 1971.
The theme of RIMPAC 2018 is "Capable, Adaptive, Partners.” The participating nations and forces will exercise a wide range of capabilities and demonstrate the inherent flexibility of maritime forces. These capabilities range from disaster relief and maritime security operations to sea control and complex warfighting. The relevant, realistic training program includes amphibious operations, gunnery, missile, anti-submarine and air defense exercises, as well as counter-piracy, mine clearance operations, explosive ordnance disposal and diving and salvage operations.
“I'm looking forward to being able to operate my weapons systems for the exercise,” said Negrete.
This is the first time Israel, Sri Lanka and Vietnam are participating in RIMPAC. Additional firsts include New Zealand serving as sea combat commander and Chile serving as combined force maritime component commander. This is the first time a non-founding RIMPAC nation (Chile) will hold a component commander leadership position.
This year will also feature live firing of a Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) from a U.S. Air Force aircraft, surface to ship missiles by the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, and a Naval Strike Missile (NSM) from a launcher on the back of a Palletized Load System (PLS) by the U.S. Army. This marks the first time a land based unit will participate in the live fire event during RIMPAC. RIMPAC 2018 will also include international band engagements and highlight fleet innovation during an Innovation Fair.
“I'm proud to be able to train other sailors in small arms,” said Negrete. "In a male dominated world, it makes me very proud to dominate my line of work as a female."
Twenty-six nations, 46 surface ships, five submarines, more than 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel will participate in the biennial Rim of the Pacific Exercise. This year's exercise includes forces from Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Colombia, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, the Republic of Korea, the Republic of the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tonga, the United Kingdom, the United States and Vietnam.
As a member of the U.S. Navy, Negrete and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“I've seen my people skills improve because of the Navy,” said Negrete. "It's made me stronger, I'm more independent, and I can handle anything that's thrown at me. Serving in the Navy has given me that extra push in life to get to where I want to be. It's helped me grow as a person and as a leader.”